Editorial: There's little solace after deadly accident

The sad, crushing reality is the Pine Plains community is in tremendous pain, and there is little anyone can do about it but offer condolences, remember the young lives lost and hope those who knew and loved the two students killed in a horrendous car crash can eventually overcome their tremendous grief.

Last week's crash is under investigation, though police have already attributed a high rate of speed and reckless driving as contributing factors.

Four teenagers were in the car, all students at Stissing Mountain High School.

There have been too many stories like this over the years, too many lives that have ended way too early.

Traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for teenagers in America. They account for 35 percent of all fatalities, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Yes, people should use this tragic event to remind their children of the utterly dangerous and powerful weapon that a vehicle most certainly is. For most of us, in fact, operating a vehicle will be the most life-threatening thing we do during the course of a day, and it's easy to take it for granted. And, yes, teenagers tend to have an air of invincibility about them, something that needs to be tempered as much as humanly possible.

Words and warnings, though, will mean only so much today. The stark reality is two local children - Zachary Pruner, 16, of Stanfordville and Gian Paolo Stagnaro, 17, of Pine Plains - are dead. They are being remembered fondly by educators and friends as being active in their schools and community in various ways, and they had their whole lives in front of them.

Two others were injured in the crash, including the driver, Dustin Hale, who remains hospitalized. The other passenger, Niall Johnson, has been released from the hospital. Three of them played together on the school's football team, and today, in a fair and just world, all four would be facing the challenges of classes and other things that occupy a teenager's life.

The school is doing all it can, has taken the appropriate steps, making grief counselors available Friday and this week, and the small community of Pine Plains surely will pull together in other ways. But there is no getting around the cold, hard fact that the pain and suffering will be immeasurable. Families have been dealt tremendous, inconsolable losses.

It's human nature to want and hope that something good can come out of this tragedy, perhaps another life saved somewhere down the road by the cautionary words about this accident. There is little left to hope for after such a deadly disaster claims such young and promising lives and forever changes others.

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Editorial: There's little solace after deadly accident

The sad, crushing reality is the Pine Plains community is in tremendous pain, and there is little anyone can do about it but offer condolences, remember the young lives lost and hope those who knew